Americans sound off over fears BIRD FLU could be coming: 'I don't want a COVID 2.0'

Many Americans are concerned about bird flu spreading to people, DailyMail.com has found.

New Yorkers told this us they were worried they could soon be staring down the barrel of a Covid 2.0' situation - after the virus infected someone in Texas.

A 20-year-old student skateboarding in the area even said the situation was 'not good' and that he 'definitely didn't want to catch it'.

Others struck a more optimistic tone, however, including two girls feeding pigeons in the park who said they would keep coming and always remembered to wash their hands afterward.

Doctors are being urged to be on alert for cases in humans after a human was diagnosed with the disease in Texas. They suffered only eye inflammation and are understood to be recovering well.

Two students feeding pigeons in Union Square, Manhattan - Amanda and Tamari - told DailyMail.com they were only mildly concerned about bird flu as pigeons scampered over them

Brandon Roberts, who was visiting New York from California, said the bird flu cases in cattle had concerned him

It comes after steakhouses in the city hit back against claims beef that was not cooked to 'well done' could contain bird flu, saying their steaks were still 'safe to eat'.

Brandon Roberts, 33, who was in the area for business, said the bird flu case recorded in Texas had concerned him. 

'I see the headlines and I am just like... "oh no, not again"-type of thing,' he said.

'I won't say as much as [Covid 2.0], but when you start seeing headlines about these things you think, "oh s***, not again! 

'That's kind of where I am right now.'

A 20-year-old student who was in the square added: 'It is not a good sign that it is showing up in people and animals now.

'I definitely don't want to catch it.'

He also revealed he had recovered from Covid four times after having bad infections with sore throats and a cough. He was not hospitalized.

Another resident, Caroline, in her 40s, said: 'I am concerned in the way of, what if it transfers to a human — could it be another pandemic?'

'Having gone through the pandemic, I do have concerns.'

A farmer attending the Union Square farmers market said several flocks near him had had bird flu detected previously

Geese, falcons and hawks living in Manhattan's parks and green spaces have tested positive for the virus, officials say, although cases could be more widespread (stock image)

But there were also New Yorkers who said they were not overly worried by the disease — or the potential for it to spread to people.

Amanda, 23, a senior at Baruch College in Manhattan, spoke to DailyMail.com while she was feeding pigeons — with several clambering over her to grab grain.

'We make sure to clean our hands afterward and try not to breathe in whenever the birds are fluttering about,' she said.

'But we will keep feeding them though, yes. This is really fun and we meet a lot of people doing this actually as well.

'It's a great way to re-connect with nature in the city.'

Asked whether she had seen any sick pigeons, she said a number of birds had 'looked gross' but that she put this down to them being in the city.

DailyMail.com also spoke to a farmer from Pennsylvania who was attending the Square's farmer's market that day. He has 1,200 chickens that are free range at his farm in Auburn.

He said: 'There were some farms in our area that had gotten it so we had to check our birds. 

'So, we tested our birds and we never caught it, so I really don't know that much about it. Thankfully, both the layers and the birds never picked anything up.'

It comes after New Yorkers were urged to keep their distance from wildlife after cases of bird flu were reported in NYC. 

Geese, falcons and hawks living in Manhattan's parks and green spaces have tested positive for the virus, officials say, warning cases could be more widespread.

Residents and visitors are being warned not to chase or try to catch birds and to wash their hands after any contact with droppings. 

Warning people to be careful around animals, Mount Sinai microbiologist Philip Meade said: 'You are got going to walk past a sick goose and get the bird flu, it won't work like that.

'[But] precautions that everybody should be taking would be just to limit contact with wildlife.

'You shouldn't be running up to a Canada goose and trying to catch it, [for example].'